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When a young man chooses a forbidden calling, he must prove his worth … or watch his kingdom fall.

Sixteen-year-old Augum Stone is a warlock prodigy suffocating under the weight of expectations. Students idolize him. Nobles plot to exploit him. Commoners think he’s a miracle-maker. And with invasion looming, his already war-weakened kingdom expects him to be its champion.

But Augum doesn’t want to be a pawn in someone else’s game. He’ll forge his own path: that of the Arcaner—not a warlock or a knight, but a lethal combination of both. Legend says Arcaners once had the power to summon dragons. If true, it could change everything.

He must survive.
He must prove he’s worthy of an ancient path.
And he must save the kingdom . . . before it’s too late.

* * *

Burden’s Edge (Fury of a Rising Dragon, book 1)Honor’s price (Fury of a Rising Dragon, book 2)
Champion’s Wrath (Fury of a Rising Dragon, book 3)

* * *

Are you as excited as I am? At long last, the first installment in the trio’s next grand adventure is nearly upon us. We only have a few weeks to go. The book is 145,000 words long, which is one and a half times longer than Arcane. Expect it to launch December 1st.

The other day my wife and I met Claire, a fourteen-year-old fan of The Arinthian Line, as well as her wonderful parents, one of whom also read the books. Her mother told me Claire “fell in love with reading” because of the series.

I don’t get to meet readers often, but to meet one who began a grand adventure into the world of books because of my work . . . well, it was truly a special occasion.

So I finished the first draft of book 1, Burden’s Edge, from the as-yet upcoming unnamed trilogy that follows our trio’s exploits after The Arinthian Line. It clocked in at around 156,000 words (for comparison, Arcane was 98,000 or so). I’m not going to spoil the plot as it might still change in editing, not to mention I have to write a blurb for it anyhow.

In the meantime, here’s what my floor looks like in preparation for book 2 (untitled). In the upper right-hand corner is a fresh batch of tea; in the lower-right the cat, Buddha. On the small table is a slew of index cards of active characters in Burden’s Edge. These aren’t all my notes; there’s still all those manila folders-worth of plot notes I have factor in. It’s a bit of a process, but it works for me. Anyway, if you were ever wondering what my plotting structure looks like, well, here you are:

Thank you for your patience; expect Burden’s Edge to come out late this year. And thank you so much for your amazing support of my work, and all of your beautiful letters. The Arinthian Line series has done well enough to allow me to do this full-time for nearly two years now. I only wish I was a faster writer, so that you would not have to wait as long. Though I suppose it could be worse (think of George RR Martin!).

With love,

-Sever

EDIT FOLLOW-UP:

This is what it looks like after an afternoon figuring everything out and putting all notes in the right place. This is how book 2 starts, essentially. (That open binder is full of old notes that have been archived). Note the pile of crumpled notes beside it. Having a glass of wine to celebrate finishing book 1. (Spoiler sheets have been left off photo).

I know everyone’s anxious to hear word on LEGEND. I’m only about two weeks behind schedule, so going to miss a Christmas launch, but it won’t be long now. Expect it early January. It’ll be worth the wait :) Sneak peek coming very soon!

In the mean, here’s a photo of some props I used for The Arinthian Line, the details of which I posted on Reddit in r/fantasy. Stop by and say hi ;)

I’m super excited to report that the first draft of LEGEND (The Arinthian Line, book 5) has been completed this morning. It clocks in around 234,000 words (about 15% longer than CLASH).

The next stage is editing, followed by prep and launch. If all goes well, you should have the final installment in The Arinthian Line by Christmas.

It’s been an emotional ride with this book. Years of work came to a head, and somehow, it all resolved in a way that made me feel personally content as someone living in that world five days a week (could you imagine?). Yet in many ways I feel like one of the luckiest people alive; I get to adventure alongside Augum, Bridget and Leera for a living.

If you want to receive an email notice when LEGEND launches, simply click here. I don’t email often, as my subscribers can attest. I’ll still keep you posted though.